Conclusion

Final Thoughts

In the Twentieth Century, Nashville and many other American cities saw a great exodus of population and financial capital from the urban core in favor of the suburban lifestyle. Currently, great attention is focused on revitalizing downtown Nashville as the unsustainability of the suburban lifestyle becomes more evident. Despite the gradual influx of population returning to the core of Nashville, suburban communities continue to hold a majority of Nashville families. Many families cite school systems, particularly the Williamson County School System as a main reason why they reside in a suburb of Nashville instead of Nashville itself. A reversal of the suburban trend is likely if greater emphasis is placed on creating a complete urban lifestyle that includes more family friendly neighborhoods, such as investing in urban school campuses that encourage community involvement and overall academic excellence.

“User-centered innovation is not sustainable,” Robert Vergani writes in a Harvard Business Review article. The idea of usercenter innovation, or market indicators, has been the driving force behind major decision making in recent decades – resulting in excesses ranging from suburban mega schools on isolated greenfield sites to increased car size and greater fuel consumption.

Even following the economic downturn, Vergani argues such perspective on the excesses has been slated as the solution for all problems and opportunities. As continued in his article, Vergani writes, “User-centered sustainability has helped conduct us into an unsustainable world. […] Only forward-looking executives, designers, and, of course, policy makers may introduce sustainable innovation into the economic picture. They need to step back from the current dominant needs and behaviors and envision new scenarios.”

Envisioning new scenarios as a means of introducing economic innovation into the core of Nashville is necessary for the continued growth of downtown. The implementation of two urban campuses, an elementary magnet school and arts magnet high school, is a great new scenario for catalyzing economic growth and residential development and strengthening the identity of downtown Nashville.

Incorporating the proposed new schools into the urban landscape of Nashville will prove to be advantageous in many respects. Not only will the schools contribute to neighborhood revitalization by improving educational opportunities for families living in downtown neighborhoods, but it will also help to cultivate identity and neighborhood pride often associated with good schools. Elevating the academic excellence of the proposed schools to that of Hume-Fogg Academic Magnet High School and Martin Luther King Magnet High School, each of which consistently rank as two of the top public schools in the United States, will only prove to make downtown Nashville a more attractive place to live and work.

Perhaps most importantly, the implementation of the new schools is not only an excellent investment in public education and a means of stimulating residential and economic growth, but also an asset in advancing Nashville into a more prosperous 21st Century. Intelligent school development is a major stepping stone on Nashville’s path towards a healthier, more sustainable Urban center.

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